at least 20 killed in iraq as security forces break up a large antigovernment protest. hello there. you're watching al jazeera live from doha all. also on the program -- a car bomb explodes in the hearts of the libyan capital, injuring two french embassy guards. threatens force against any chinese ships that arrived at a disputed set of islands. destination mars, thousands of volunteers sign up for one-way ticket to the red planet.

a weeklong protest in northern iraq has ended in violence after police move to disburse them. at least 20 people killed. security forces moved in on the sunni demonstrators after surrounding them for four street days. army officials accused protesters of attacking several checkpoints in the area. meanwhile, one of the highest- ranking kurds and the iraqi government has been sacked. he has been the foreign minister of iraq for nearly a decade. mary l maliki replaced him on tuesday in response to an ongoing boycott by kurdish politicians -- nouri al-maliki replaced him on tuesday. the foreign minister will be replaced by maliki's deputy, a prominent shia muslim and former iraqi oil minister. is on the line with us from iraq.

what did he say? >> he actually says that the decision has now been risen -- then reversed. he says the cabinet of mr. maliki were persuaded that it would be detrimental to efforts to solve an ongoing crisis between the kurdish leadership and the baghdad government. there was to have been a high level kurdish delegation arriving in baghdad. the threat is that it is not just this foreign minister but four other ministers are replaced today, that delegation will not be coming. the prime minister's office says it does not have any information that the decision has been reversed, but it appears that there may be a rethinking of that. it does illustrate not just the ongoing unrest in hawijah and other places but also the political crisis. >> before this apparent decision, the foreign minister

had been thought to have been appointed as the new foreign minister, and this would have supported protesters complaints have shown maliki up shia power and the government. >> he was actually appointed as acting foreign minister. he currently does have a fairly high role as deputy prime minister. but he is part of the shia coalition. that is part of the problem. consolidating a hold on power. we are seeing that with the reaction to the killing of 20 people. that protest going on since the protester was shot on friday as an attempt to end the standoff. the iraqi government says these were not just ordinary protesters. it says the protest was infiltrated by bath this is in al qaeda. it has caused a huge uproar. three soldiers were killed and that as well. the sunni community, obviously, and others are focusing on the

20 protesters in the group who ave been killed. coo >> please remind us what these protesters are upset about. >> absolutely, they are angered and in despair in many places over what they say is continued persecution of sunnis, particularly those being rounded up for arrest under sweeping anti-terrorism laws. the feeling is that al qaeda is behind a lot of the attacks still going on, and al qaeda is sunni. a lot of the arrests are made in sunni communities. these were sparked in december with the arrest of bodyguards of a senior sunni politician. they have not let up since then. every friday, there are mass prayers and protest in sunni towns and provinces. those provinces have essentially been cut off on fridays from baghdad. , it was the same

grievances. these are coordinated protest, and they have taken an increased hard-line turn with clerics and other leaders who have not been known before, taking a different direction. >> all right, jane, thank you once again. jane arraf on the line from iraq. has exploded outside the french of the sea and the libyan capital tripoli. two security guards were injured in the blast. still not clear who is behind the attack. jacky rowland has the story and reaction from paris. >> the force of the explosion brought down the walls of nearby buildings and started a fire that engulfed some offices inside the embassy. one french security officer was seriously wounded, another suffered light injuries. at the government condemned the attack and promised to track down the perpetrators. immediately going to libya,

i discussed this with the president and prime minister. i will first go see the two french policemen. and i will have a meeting with libyan authorities. they libyan foreign minister called me this morning to tell us that they were fully available to help. >> last september, the u.s. consulate in benghazi, eastern libya, was attacked. the u.s. ambassador christopher stephens and three other americans were killed. also in benghazi last year, a convoy carrying the british ambassador was had by a rocket. no one was seriously injured. the french embassy bombing is the first such serious attack in tripoli where security is generally seen as better. , theese targeted attacks attacks, if you notice, they are on those countries that help libya, namely the american ambassador, before that the british, and now the french. one can come to one conclusion, that those who are opposing the revolution or who are opposing

the changing libya are targeting the very people that help civilians to realize their dream. that is democracy and freedom. >> two years after the ousting of omar gaddafi, libya is awash with weapons. there are militias of which the government has no control. jacky rowland, al jazeera, paris. >> and international nuclear body says it has detected traces of gases that could indicate that north korea did conduct a nuclear test earlier this year. the copperheads of nuclear test ban treaty organizations is radioactive isotopes were found that a monitoring station in japan. north korea has been threatening to launch a missile after it was slapped with more sanctions over its nuclear program. it will use force to expel any chinese ships that arrive at a disputed island in east china sea. it made the announcement as eight chinese vessels into the area. here is the report on the latest events surrounding these

islands. aroundlatest standoff the disputed islands known as , they arend china protest onboard a a small flotilla around the islands west shadowed by japanese coast guard vessels and chinese surveillance ships. the set in advance by eight chinese vessels into what japan says is its territory resulted in a warning the japanese side. and a hasty withdrawal. it drew this response from japanese prime minister shinzo abe who has promised to be tougher in territorial disputes such as this. >> if there is an intrusion into our territory or it seems there could be a landing on the island, then we will deal with it strongly. >> this standoff took place in the wake of a controversial visit by senior japanese politicians to the shrine in tokyo that honors the country's

war dead, including convicted war criminals. these sorts of visits always provoke strong reactions from japan's neighbors, and the scale of the chinese maritime incursion may be directly linked to its level of disapproval. both sides have shown their willingness to assert their claims with equal vigor. the danger is, in all of these shows of force, an accidental collision or even fatality could take place, that would take this dispute to a former series level. al jazeera, hong kong. >> in canada, two men have been charged with planning an attack on a train on a cross-border route with the united states or do men are foreign nationals. canadian authorities claim they had direction and guidance from al qaeda members in iran. but the iranian foreign minister disagrees. .> these are new fabrications iran's al qaeda. this is extremely shameful and really surprises me. if canada has said something like this, then it is the most

ridiculous thing i have heard in my entire 64 years. what is this nonsense that they are spreading? >> the u.s. defense secretary has reiterated the u.s. .ommitment to israel's security jon kay geomet israel's prime minister on tuesday. they have been discussing the terms terms of a multibillion- dollar arms deals. -- chuck hagel visited the prime minister on tuesday. >> israel appreciates deeply the support, the military and security support, that it enjoys from the united states. it reflects a very deep alliance between our two countries in the defense of our common interests and values. nowhere are these values and interests challenged more than by the arming of the terrorist groups by iran with sophisticated weapons. equally, iran los attempt to arm itself with nuclear weapons. >> a palestinian prisoner has

agreed to in his hunger strike in exchange for an early release. samer issawi has been refusing food for the past eight months. the strike has led to weeks of protest against israel detention policies. he was due to remain and prison until 2029 but will now be released this year. for more on this, let's go live to ramallah. that's between member of the palestinian prisoners organization. welcome to the program. what do you think of this deal? >> good afternoon. , he hasat the center succeeded in guaranteeing his release after eight months actually and not getting back the old sentence that he was supposed to get, about 20 years, after his release after the case of shalit. he guaranteed his release actually. >> how many other palestinian prisoners are still on hunger

strike from what you know? >> currently, besides samer on ai, there are three hunger strike. two of them -- [indiscernible] one decided yesterday actually to stop his hunger strike. the other is continuing up to date. there is another one that he is ofer hunger strike because a next change deal option. >> these hunger strikes have drawn attention to israel's detention policies, but has it resulted in any real change? i would think that on the general level for the long-term actually, it is not clear that this policy of hunger strikes would affect the general conditions of the palestinian prisoners. but on the individual level, it affects them because most of the president -- prisoners who were

in hunger strike were guaranteed either release or to be limiting the extension of detention in their cases in advance of that attention. fortunately, some of them agreed to be deported together, which this is part of international law, of course, deportation. in general, we cannot say that the conditions for the prisoners in the israeli presidents were approved. the opposite, this hunger strike actually and the success and made what he 12 of the general morer strike cost attention in the prison in the meaning of more attacks of the sections in the name of security searches and regulations actually that they face on a daily basis. let's remember that they had the high court saying that this is a privilege that we will not offer the palestinian prisoners. >> ok, thank you for speaking to us. the palestinian prisoners

advocacy organization. it is going issue that has divided the country, but now lawmakers and france are set to decide if same-sex marriage should be legal. more on story coming up. and a cosmic event has been captured on camera. we >> welcome back. you are watching al jazeera. a reminder of our top stories. at least 20 sunni protesters have been killed in hawijah in northern iraq after police moved in to disperse them. the latest in a series of protests against the government. security forces accuse the protesters of attacking several checkpoints. a car bomb has exploded outside the french of missy and the libyan capital tripoli. -- outside the french embassy. two security guards injured. not clear who is behind the attack. tensions mounting in the east china sea after beijing sent eight ships into the disputed waters there.

the area is known to a group of islands claimed by china, taiwan, japan. japan has warned that any chinese citizen who sets foot on the island will be forcibly removed. at least eight teen lebanese fighters have been killed in central syria. ash 18 fighters have been killed. the free syrian army says were members of hezbollah. george sobran has warned hezbollah to stay out of the ongoing conflict appeared meanwhile, to do prominent syrian bishops have reportedly been kidnapped. state media say rebel fighters and aleppo abducted the leaders of the greek orthodox churches. the men were reportedly doing humanitarian work at the time. as more from lebanon. >> these bishops are the most senior and the christian community who have been kidnapped threat the past two years. many other christians been kidnapped in the past, sometimes for ransom.

their kidnapping, however, since a lot of concern and alarm to the christian community and aleppo and throughout syria. most of the christian community is very concerned about the developments in the country in the past few years. they are afraid of the rising power of the groups and most support assad. many have left the country, especially aleppo, as the battles rage there in the past six months. for many people in syria, this is just another sign of how the situation is deteriorating, especially for them, they say. >> french and african forces have driven rebels out of their stronghold in northern mali. often times, fighters leave their equipment and clues to the operations behind. here is the report from a former rebel stronghold. >> the town in northern mali here is now under the control of tuareg rebels. but during most of last year, this was the place where al qaeda set up base. instructions by top commanders

are still legible on the walls. many of the recruits apparently did not read or write. the words were used to teach the arabic alphabet. remnants of heavy artillery around the place. guns mostly brought from libya or taken from the million army. these metal tubes were especially shaped and cut to be turned into bombs. hundreds of smaller groups are also locally made to be used as improvised explosive devices, ied's. he explains that they fill tubes with explosives, answered a long wire, so they can detonate the device from a distance. in january, french bombers leveled these buildings to the ground. at the site of the bombing, this was found carrying the name and logo of one of the athletes of the islamic. copy movement of the sons for justice. it was the head of this group who led the hostage taking

operation in southern algeria last jenny worried. the town is also the place where al qaeda began experimenting with its own interpretation of the sharia law. the only case of stoning to death for adultery in the area took place here. like they dug a ditch year and brought the couple in a pickup. the woman took off her shoes and quietly stepped into the ditch. the man did the same him of the they told him it is not necessary to off his shoes. they started to throw stones on them. the public watched without participating, but i ran away because i cannot bear to see it. >> many people in the village are still trying to make sense of life under al qaeda rule. >> together people and mosques to warn them against either talk or font. the young recruits began to fourth or fathers to grow beards. every month, they would take off your turbine to see if you have a beard. >> we used to control

everything, even the size of the cloth we could put on like this. >> people here are extremely poor and feel forgotten. mere survival in the harshest of desert climates. the old live in her casual toil for life basics. the young search for bits and pieces of a world they perceive as better than their own. torn between foreign ideologies and forces at war with each other on their own soil. al jazeera, northern mali. >> police in russia are looking for a man who killed at least six people during a robbery of a gun shop in a southwest city. police say the man shot four employees inside the shop and two teenage girls on the street outside peered he then escaped in a car. hours, the french parliament will vote on whether to join a growing list of countries that have legalized gay marriage. argentina to south africa have already passed laws making

marriage legal for same-sex couples. new zealand was added to the list just last week. certain states in brazil, mexico, and the u.s. have legalized gay marriage. but a national law has yet to pass. the number of countries where it is legal to set to rise, bills being made in 10 countries. as bernard smith reports, this is likely to remain controversial among the french public. that bitterlysue divides opinion in france. this was the latest demonstration in paris in favor of same-sex marriage. legal reform that is expected to be passed by parliament on tuesday. on the same day, a parallel protest against gay marriage am a bringing together members of the catholic church as well as well as supporters of right-wing groups. the backlash against the draft france byken many in surprise. the purpose of the law is to

promote equality and enhance civil liberties for gay people people. in recent months, the debate about gay marriage has coincided with an increase in homophobic attacks. the case of a young dutchman who was been up for walking hand in hand with his friends boyfriend has provoked nationwide shock, but he is not the only ones who have been attacked simply for being gay. this hostel in paris, young gay people can find temporary shelter. these two young men were thrown out by their families. now they say they are experiencing growing intimidation and harassment. people have become very homophobic since the law ain't gay marriage went before the senate. they make fun of us. when someone sees us, say, look, it is the faggots. they do everything possible to make us feel guilty about being gay. click before this debate, homophobia was hidden. it was there, but no one expressed it. these demonstrations have brought homophobes together and given them a feeling of

strength in numbers. they feel they have the right to talk about gay people and and a very negative way. >> youth worker say it is the same story across paris. young people feeling increasingly vulnerable. >> we have seen a rise in the member of calls to our hotline from young people suffering from increased harassment at home, at school, and in the workplace. assuming smooth passage of the law, the first gay marriages in france are expected to take place and about to do much time. while the law may change, it is clear that some attitudes are made deeply entrenched. bernard smith, al jazeera. reelected newly president george napolitano has threatened to resign if politicians continue to rely -- react irresponsibly. he warned politicians about the country's economic crisis and urged them to form a new government without delay. the paula abdul said he would only accept a second term and

office because of the -- napolitano only accepted a second term because of the dramatic alarm. >> i have the duty to be frank. if i find myself once again facing the kind of deafness ran into in the past, i would not hesitate to throw the consequences before the country. we cannot any longer in any field escape the duty of proposals to look for the solutions, to make clear and prompt decisions towards reforms for the italian society withhe marcus he was -- no further delay to progress. let me tell you, let someone who enter this house at the age of 28 and hasn't day after day ever sense made a little -- has day after day made a little step forward for the development of the democratic life of this country. >> rain has slowed efforts in china to clean up after saturday's magnitude 6.6 earthquake, but there are signs that life is returning to normal in some of the affected areas of

sichuan province. students begin classes again in tnetents set up by the chinese army. at least 200 people were killed. the wife of a chinese nobel peace prize winner has left her apartment where she has been under house arrest. she was allowed to leave her home briefly to attend her brothers trial. jujube opportunity to tell the media outside the court that the authorities are restricting her freedom. her husband has been in jail since 2010 for pushing for political change in china. by a turned into day meteor in argentina. it exploded into a ball of light, and it was captured on video. it was traveling at around 130,000 kilometers per hour. it could be seen for hundreds of kilometers. scienceo want to make fiction into fact now have a chance. a dutch company is looking for volunteers to travel to mars

them above there is one catch. the wood-the astronauts will not be coming back. here is the explanation. >> what is it with mars these days? everyone wants to go there, it seems. a dutch outfit calling itself mars one turned up in new york on monday, super keen to hear from you if you fancy a life on the red planet. >> are you willing to take the risks to leave everything behind, to be one of the first four mars astronauts. or ask anyone can apply apparently 10,000 people from 100 countries has already expressed interest by e-mail. >> i would describe my sense of humor as ridiculous and all- inclusive. >> he may not find it quite so funny when he learned he will not be coming back. nor will anyone, for that matter. this offer is one-way only. >> i am 44 years young, from germany, and i want to go to mars. >> clearly, getting on with

your fellow mars maniacs will be a big part of this mission, even though there will be only four astronauts to begin with, the game is for to do more to blast off every year. men and women with a sense of adventure. >> i believe this is my life goal. just to see what it is to take action and to reach those goals, setting up new ones as i go. >> mars one says sending the first four people to mars will cost a cool $6 billion. a ton of cash, but think of the money from the tv rights alone. they are even planning a reality tv show. >> it will be a democratic process where the world decides who goes to mars. >> if this sounds familiar, it is. last february, a man paid the russians $20 million to become the world's first space tourist. he came to washington, d.c., to announce his own plans for mars. he wants to play husband-and- wife team over the planet in 2018. he has yet to acquire a rocket,

living so, or enough funds, like mars one, and he cannot guarantee the happy couple will not get skin cancer, disappear forever, or burn up on reentry to earth. but at least he is planning to try to bring them back.